Thiol-functionalized cobalt porphyrins were used as a model system for investigating catalytic activity in homogeneous and heterogeneous oxidation catalysis. Self-assemble monolayers of thiol-functionalized cobalt porphyrins were prepared on a gold surface and served as heterogenous catalysts. These immoblilized molecules prevented the strong inactivation observed for their homogeneous congener. As a result, the turnover number per molecule in heterogeneous catalysis was at least 100 times higher than that of the corresponding homogeneous catalyst. It is atypical for a heterogenized catalyst to outperform its homogeneous congener. The properties of the molecular layers were characterized on the molecular level by means of X-ray photoelectorn spectroscopy (XPS) and scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). The results demonstrate that the performance of these biomimetic catalysts can be dramatically improved if the catalyst arangement can be controlled on the molecular level.